CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
April and Michelangelo returned to the scene of the action with something different in tow. "Guys, refocus a little alright? Mike's idea might just work" she said
"You listened to him?" Leonardo asked, annoyed slightly.
"Might as well get this over with. What is it?" Donatello inquired Michelangelo produced a sizeable portion of duct tape. "Ta-da" he said excitedly
"Duct tape?" Donatello said, shell-shocked, "Are you serious?"
"Saw it on a wrestling show once" Michelangelo boasted proudly.
"How can you watch…ANYTHING that gives you these kind of ideas?" Leonardo chimed in
" I think this can work" April assured them
"Chicks totally dig creative minds" Michelangelo said gleefully as April put her faith in his plan.
"Fine, fine, we've tried everything else" Leonardo conceded.
"Now we need to find something to stick that brute to" April commented
Donatello spotted a nearby lamppost, he beckoned Raphael over to where he was standing.
"Raph. Lure him over here" he instructed, pointing to the lamppost. Raphael got in Bebop's face shortly after
"Hey, hey UGLY" he said
"Insult him with something as lame as that. Yeah, you're a wise man" Casey criticized.
"I tend to save the best stuff for my brother" Raphael replied
The two turned around as Bebop advanced, they began to both make a beeline for the lamppost.
"That's it, lure him over there" Donatello urged them.
Michelangelo suddenly reacted to an invisible force smacking him in the face. He shook his head ever so slightly. "Uh oh" he said.
"What is it?" Donatello asked
"Reality slap" Michelangelo answered.
"…A reality slap?" Donatello inquired.
"I get these all the time. Nothing to worry about" Michelangelo assured him.
"What are they then?" Donatello asked, now very curious.
"They're the part of my brain that lets me know just how dumb and unrealistic my ideas can be, and how they'd never work. Like I said, nothing to worry about. Everything's cool.. This is totally going to work."
He soon reacted to something else.
"What is it now?" an observant Donatello asked.
"I don't usually get two reality slaps in a row" Michelangelo replied.
After a hectic game of cat and mouse, missing the mark a couple of times and being chased in a merry little circle that tired Bebop out further, Raphael and Casey's gambit finally paid off. The Turtles eventually succeed in tying Bebop up to the lamppost using the duct tape, wrapping it around his chest. He struggled a bit, but the tape was too strong.
"What a parcel" Raphael said.
"Put a little bow on it and he's all set for Christmas" Michelangelo commented, pulling Bebop's cheek. "Who's a little cracker eh? Who's a little cracker?"
"Alright, now it's time for you guys to disappear" Casey said, pointing his hockey stick at Raphael.
"What's with the attitude? We just saved your life" Donatello pointed pout
"Yeah Casey, don't dick around with them now, they're the guys who saved me at the park" April insisted.
"Hey, they are NOT guys, or people. Just look at them" Casey responded.
"Hey, we're no spring chickens, but I bet even if we had a staring competition in the mirror, it wouldn't crack when seeing our mugs, yours on the other hand..." Raphael remarked.
"Oh yeah tough thing? Wanna play a game of chicken?" Casey said, pushing Raphael
"Oh I'm game for anything" Raphael said, and pushed Casey back. Gabrielle tried to keep Casey restrained, while Leonardo and Donatello both had to grab hold of Raphael
As all of this went on, Michelangelo noticed April had distanced herself from the squabbling, he found her looking on at the wreckage of her house, she began to gently sob, the events of the whole day finally taking an emotional toll on her. Michelangelo reached out to her.
"Hey, hey, the good guys won, don't be like that" he said
"Look what that bastard did to my house. Oh Mike, I've lost everything" April said, holding both hands to her face, falling apart emotionally. Michelangelo gathered her up in his arm and held her as she cried
Her distress caught Casey's attention and he ceased arguing with Raphael, his hot-headedness was not cooled by April finding solace in someone's arms other than his, and he walked over to confront Michelangelo.
"Hey, I'm the boyfriend, I'll take care of that" he said
Raphael broke free of his brothers and tapped Casey on the shoulder, "I don't think the lady is in the mood for a human tug of war" he said.
Leonardo froze, "guys, wait, listen" he said
Everyone stopped, and slowly joined Leonardo, keeping their ears open, within seconds, they picked up the faint sounds of police car sirens
"They're here, thank god!" Gabrielle said
"Who's here?" Raphael asked
"Stick around and find out wise guy" Casey said
"Casey, shut up" April snapped, and turned to address the other Turtles, having composed herself
"Guys, that usually means more people are on the way. People who won't understand what happened here. Or you. You better split. You've done all you can"
"It wasn't enough though, was it? I mean we couldn't stop your house from being totaled"
April dried her eyes and gave Michelangelo a warm smile, putting one finger on his nose.
"Lighten up, we're all alive aren't we?" she said
"Yeah, but life without a tv must suck though" Michelangelo added. April laughed and gave him another hug.
"You did good Mike. Really, you all did good. Thanks. Now go" she said.
"I don't know about this guys, that creature was way too hot to handle for us, what makes you think others can cope?" Donatello commented.
"You worry too much Don" Michelangelo said, "That thing's one big Christmas decoration now, no way is it gonna harm…"
There was a sudden roar from behind them. Bebop, while struggling to break free of the duct tape, had tore the lamppost clean off of it's foundations with his sheer strength, though he remained attached to it.
Michelangelo felt another invisible reality slap leave its mark on his face.
